When an employer is offering someone a job, they often throw in a benefits package to persuade a prospective employee to accept the offer. When we’re deciding whether to open a credit card account, we find the benefits of choosing a certain plan are broadcasted much louder than those pesky interest rates. In any decision we are left to choose the option where the benefits or rewards outweigh the risks. The psalmist David knew that life with God included a benefits package too great to refuse.
David must have spent a lot of his time contemplating the benefits that come from being in right relationship with God. David knew the destructive nature of his own sin, so he spent time praising the Lord for His gracious mercy (Psalm 103:3). It was clear to David that his relationship with God was greater than the temporary satisfaction of his own sin. But because David was still sick from his sinning, he was keenly aware of his need for a Healer.
When David wrote this psalm, he was waiting for the Messiah. God made it known to David that a Savior was coming who would heal man from disease, but David was in a period of waiting. God’s healing is always dependent on His own perfect timing. Still, David chose to praise God for the benefits he was receiving, knowing that there would be even greater benefits to come.
How often do you consider the benefits of being in a relationship with Christ? There is no doubt that these benefits are a good reason for us to praise God. Among other things, when we are in Christ, we have freedom from condemnation, freedom from the law of sin and death, and the gift of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us (Romans 8:1–3).
Christ restored us back into relationship with the Father by taking on the sin of man. The righteous Healer made Himself sick by taking our sins upon Himself. Without Christ, we would be left to our own destruction. Christ has saved us from the darkest and deepest of places, and He sends His Spirit to keep us healthy. By the power of the Spirit, we have been equipped to resist the sickening pull back into sinful patterns (Galatians 5:16–25).
To restore something means to bring it back to its original state. Though we are restored to a relationship with God the Father through the atonement of Christ, we are not yet restored to the fullness of His original design. Still, there is no risk in choosing what the Lord has to offer. We are promised the day when Christ returns to earth and we will finally experience freedom from the corruption of sin and disease. By God’s grace, we will experience complete healing. What do we choose to do as we wait? The choice is easy. Like David, we praise the Lord.
